Drilling machine



March 19,19461- Q A, WIKE ETAL 2,396,733

DRILLING MACHINE Filed May 5, 1942 9 sheets-sheet 1 Marh19,1946. C A WlKEN ETA; 2,396,733

DRILLING MACHINE Filed May 5, 1942 9 sheetsfshet 2 March 19, 1946. c. A. WIKEN ETAI. 2,396,733

n DRILLING MACHINE I Filed May 5, 1942 9 Sheets-sheet 4 March 19, 1946. QA. wlKEN ETAL 2,396,733

' .DRILLING MACHINEA Filed May 5, 1942 9 snets-sheet '6 ETE- E M 12min-...1l

l @MMIII/W March 19, 1946.

C. A. wlKEN ET AL DBILLING MACHINE 9 Sheets-Sheet '7 Filed May 5, 1942 March 19,1946. CQA. WIKEN ETA.. y 2,396,733

DRILLING lMACHINE Filed May 5, 1942 9 sheetssheet 9 Y y ,f m?, M mi m .NKN 7 Il. A f A0. Ye 7. @0W 6 www,

Patented Mar. 19, 1946 .UNITED STATES PATENT ori-*ICE DRILLING MACHINE Application May 5, 1942, seria1N0.441,s54

Claims.

The present invention relates primarily to drilling machines, although it is not restricted thereto. An object of the invention is to provide means which may either be built into a drilling machine during the manufacture thereof, or added later to an already existing drilling machine or similar device,` in order to provide means for feeding the drill or other cutting tool to the work-piece by a novel automatic mechanically actuated feed mechanism.

A further object is to provide an improved power feed means for use in connection with a drill press or the like, having provision whereby it may receive its power from the same source that actuates the drill press, usually an electric motor or the like mounted on the drill press itself. For this purpose use is preferably made of both ends of the motor shaft, for example, the upper end of the motor shaft may drive the drill spindle, while the lower end furnishes power for the feed mechanism.

Another object is to provide a novel power feed which readily may be thrown into and out of service so that the drill may be fed to the work either manually or automatically as may be expedient in any given instance.

in or out of driving engagement with the drill press, as desired, and positively preventing the power feed device from accidentally becoming engaged or disengaged as the case may be, while in no way preventing an easy shift from one type of feed to the other when desired.

An additional object is to provide variable ratio drive means for the power feed mechanism, preferably consisting of a pair of cone pulleys mounted respectively upon the motor shaft and upon a driven shaft of the power feed device, with a connecting belt which may be shifted to-connect the corresponding steps of the said two pulleys to one another.

A further object is to provide means whereby said connecting belt may be mounted with sufiicient looseness on the pulleys to make it easy to shift rapidly when required, andto provide This is accom-v plished by providing gearing having one portion connected to the manual feeding means of the 10 itself, and to provide a flexible connecting means between the two assemblies, whereby one of the assemblies may be turned through a slight angle with respect to the other without appleably disturbing the driving connection between them,

whereby the gears connected to the manual feed means may be shifted into and out of engagement at will by relatively tilting their shafts without disturbing the continuous actuation rof the two assemblies.

A still further object is to provide av frangible connection between the two assemblies, whereby one ofthe assemblies may stop if the drill inadvertently meets unexpected or excessive resistance to its feed, so that injury tothe power feed mechanism and 4possibly other elements of the machine is prevented. A preferred form of this frangible device comprises a shear pin through which driving power is' transmitted from one assembly to the other.

Another object is to' provide a' power feed having a tripping abutment in the path of a tripper .movable downwardly with the quill,` the' abutment being movable out of the path vof the' tripper when manual feed operationv is desired.

Among the objects is that of connecting the main drive shaft and the drill-feed` shaft Vby a flexible coupling, and mounting one shaft yfor tilting movement through a fange somewhat more than sufficient to provide for'gear engage- 40 ment and disengagement, with the axis of tilt shaft,in combination with vmeans for anchoring the said housing in various angular positions about the axis of the said shaft, permitting accurate alinement of theAY tw'o vdrive shaftV ysections.

A further obje-pt ispo provide a novel oiier assembly, for feeding lubricant to the bearing for the worm shaft enclosed in the housing, as well as to thel wormA and worm wheel.

An additionalobject is to' providel a4 range' of means for automatically taking up the slack in V overtravel of the quill beyond the` tripping point, and a positive stop permitting hand feed to perform oounterboring and other precision drilling operations to predetermined depths, within very small tolerances.

Another object is to provide novel mechanism for engaging the worm with the worm wheel, comprising a single lever which, when moved in one direction, will comparatively slowly cam the two into mesh against the action of a spring, Y

mined extent of quill travel.

A further object is to provide a novel guard for the upper pulleys and belt, provided with means for holding said guard out of the way rwhen the belt is to be shifted or replaced, and

having also a locking means forV holding it in its guarding position.

Another object is to provide a novel drill press feed mechanism having an automatic stop which is controlled by the depth of feed of the drill spindle, and which automatically disengages the connection between the power feed device and the drill press when a desired predetermined depth of feed has been reached.

Other objects and advantages of the invention in part will be brought out specically in the following description of an example thereof and in part will be self-evident from the structures disclosed.

',In order to explain the invention clearly, a'

specific form of power feed mechanism, at present believed to be the preferred form, is shown in the accompanyingdrawings, and described in .the specification.

Referring to the drawingsv vFigure 1 is a fragmentary perspective elevation as seen from a pointl in front of and to the right of themechanismhowing a drill press includthe bearing means for the shaft of the rear unit, '-1 said shaft being shown in elevation;

Figure 5 is a diagrammatic partly sectional view as seen from the right, substantially on a vertical central plane of the drive shaft connect ing the two assemb1ies'-.comprised ingthe power drive, the drill press itself being omitted to avoid confusion;

Figure 6 is a corresponding View from the left ,Y through the forward casing` which contains the drive gear mounted on the manual feed spindle Lfor the drill press, the parts being shown in this figure inV the position they assume when the power drive is in service;

Figure '7 is another View of the same structure as is shown in Figure 6 wherein, however, the i power feed is out of service, and it will be noted ,i -that the exible connection between the assemblies is here put in service to permit a slight deviation in the axes of the drive shafts;

shown in Figures 6 and 7, the section being made substantially on the planes indicated by the broken line 8-8 of Figure 6;

Figure 9 is a fragmentary sectional view substantially on the plane indicated by the line 9 9 of Figure 6;

Figure 10 is a fragmentary sectional view showing a section made substantially on the plane indicated by the line lil-IG of Figure 6;

Figure 11 is a sectional view showing a section made by the surface indicated by the broken -Figure 8 is a fragmentary sectional .view

through the drive means and associated parts Vand partly arcuate line H-Il of Figure 6;

Figure 12 is a partly sectional elevation of the worm and worm shafts and associated mechanism;

Figure 13 is a diagrammatic partly sectional plan view corresponding to Figure 12, the section being made by the planes indicated by the broken line I3-I3 of Figure 12;

Figure 14 is an elevation of a guide plate;

Figure 15 is a sectional view of said guide plate, the section being made on the planes indicated ,by the broken line y[5 25 of Figure 14, both Figure 14 and Figure 15 being on a reduced scale;

Figure 16 is a partly sectional detail of a bracket and spring pressed pin for use in controlling the putting into and out of service of the power feed;

Figure 17 is a section through the structure shown in Figure 16 on the planes indicated by the broken line [1 -Il;

Figure 18 is an exploded View showing the principal structural elements of the power feed mechanism;

Figure 19 is an exploded view showing a bracket used for attaching the said mechanism to an existing drilling machine;

Figure 20 is a plan view, partly broken away, showing the means for tensioning the drive belt for the power feed device automatically, upon closing the guard casing for said belt;

Figure 21 is a fragmentary detail of this tensioning means, showing the idler and the spring for actuating the same;

Figure 22 is a section through the idler and associated elements, the section being made on the planes indicated by the broken line 22-22 of Figure 20;

Figure 23 is an exploded View of the tensioning means and belt guard;

Figure 24 is a plan view, partiy in section, showing the two pieces that form the bottom closure of a guard for the main drive pulleys and belt of the machine;

Figure 25 is a fragmentary vertical section through the guard and supporting means for the same, on the plane indicated by the line 25-25 of Figure 24;

Figure 26 is a plan view of the rear piece of the bottom closure;

Figure 27 is a fragmentarydetail showing a. vertical section through one member of a forkjoint for connecting the pieces of the bottom closure, the section being made on the plane indicated by the line 21-21 of Figure 26;

Figure 28 is a fragmentary vertical section through the upper shell of the guard and a portion of the frame of the machine, on the plane indicated by the line 28-28 of Figure 24, and showing the shell in its lowermost, locked position; Y yFigure 29 is likewise a fragmentary vertical section on the same plane as Figure 28, but show- Aing theY shell in its raised position, giving access tothe pulleys and belt; and

Figure 30 is a fragmentary vertical section on the plane indicated by the line 30-30 of Figure 24, showing one of the hooks that support the shell on the flanges of the bottom closure.

In all the gures corresponding elements are indicated by similar reference characters.

Referring rst to Figures 1 and 2, it will be noted that the drilling machine to which the invention is here applied comprises a supporting column I, carrying a table 2 which is attached thereto by means of the sleeve 3 and screws 4. The table 2 may be shifted up and down the column l as desired and thereafter clamped to the column in adjusted position in any desired way, for example by means of the screws 5. A suitable collar 6 may also be secured to the column I at any desired position by means of the screw 1 or the like, to serve as an abutment for the bearing 260 which supports the rack bar for raising or lowering the frame 8, as in Patent 2,122,966 for example.

The drill press head 8 is also carried by the column I mounted drill spindle 9 actuated by the motor I through cone pulleys Il and I2 connected by belt I3 and enclosed in a novel guard I4 which in turn is secured to the drill press head b-y means of a novel assembly that will be hereinafter deand in turn carries the rotatably scribed and embodying a manually operable f screw means I5, these parts beingbest shown in Figure 2.

The motor I0 which operates the spindle 9 is shown with its shaft I6 extending both above and below' the motor casing, the cone pulley I2 being carried by the upper end of the shaft and another cone pulley I1 by the lower end thereof. The motor is mountedon the support I3 carried by studs I9 slidably mounted in the lugs 20 on the drill press head or frame 8. This permits adjusting the belt I3 to the requisite tension, by sliding said studs I9. in or out and then securing them, as by the cap screws 2| or the like. Obviously this will not vary the tension of the belt 22 connecting the cone pulley I1 with a companion cone` pulley 23, provided for a, purpose which will be explained fully hereinafter and therefore will not disturb the proper tensioning `of' said belt 22. A special means for relieving the tension of the belt. 22 is provided also, and will be described later.

Means are provided for feeding the drill spindle 9 in a vertical direction and these means may be of any conventional type, usually including a, rack-and-pinion drive for the. quill 24, the pinion being formed on or carried by the spindle 25. so that manual rotation of the said spindle by means of the handle 26 will feed the drill spindle 9 up or down in the customary manner. It will be shown later how the spindle 25 is used also to provide power feed-of the drill spindle to the work, lby means of the present invention.

Means are provided for controlling the depth of feed of the spindle 9 as shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3.. These means. provide a threaded rod 21 having a flattened front4 surface 28 and a flattened rear surface 2-9. This rod is carried by the quill 24 by means of the fitting 36 secured ."to the lower end of said spindle by the screw 3I2, the rod 21 being threaded into said fitting and secured against turning in any desired way, for example by means of thev lock nut 32, so as to maintain the surfaces 2B and 23 in front and in back, respectively. These flattened portions yare received Within a notch 33 formed in a portion of the head so that the rod 21 may slide vertically in said notch as the quill moves up and down. A nut 34` is threaded on the rod and a corresponding nut 35 is also threaded thereon, a plate 36 being held between them for a purpose which will be described later. Obviously when the lower surface of the nut 34 reaches the upper surface of the metal surrounding the notch 33, the downward motion of the drill spindle 9 will be stopped automatically, and this affords an opportunity of adjusting the vertical feed or depth of cut, by screwing the nut 34 up or down as required. The nut 35 will then act as a lock nut, while the piece 36 may be considered as a washer between the two nuts, so that once the nut 34 is adjusted to secure the proper depth of drilling, the adjustment may be secured against accidental change by the lock nut 35.

The plate 36 also carries a rod or pin 31 which may be held in any desired way, for example it may be secured between nuts 38 and 39 threaded upon the upper end of the pin 31. This rod 31 acts as means forautomatically throwing the power feed out of service when a, predetermined depth of drilling has been attained, by engaging a pin which throws a worm out of engagement with the corresponding worm wheel, as will be described later.

With this background relating mainly to the structure of the drill press itself, it will now be possi-ble to discuss the power feed device which cooperates with said drill press. Upon referring to Figure 1, it will be noted that said power feed device preferably comprises two distinct units or assemblies 40 and 4I, each of which is enclosed in an independent casing, a shaft extending from one to the other and having a fiexible coupling 59-62 interposed therein.

Referring first to the rear unit 40, which provides the rst speed reduction, as shown best in Figures 4 and 5, it will be noted that this comprises the cone pulley 23 which receives power from the belt 22 of Figure 2 and drives the vertical shaft 43 which" is mounted in the casing 44 by means of suitable bearings 45 and 46, the bearing 46 being hereshown as of the ball type. The shaft 43 carries a worm 46 which is in mesh with the worm gear 41 carried by the shaft 48, which it will be seen has its axis at a slight angle to the horizontal. It is of course easily possible to. provide any desired angle by suitably designing the worm 46 and the worm wheel 41 engaged therewith,l and it should also be understood that while it is convenient to incline the shaft 48 to the horizontal, this is by no means essential in all cases. The casing 44 has a cover 49 carrying a bearing housing 5I) for the shaft 43 and the rear end of said shaft is supported in a cooperating bearing 5I which may be formed in the casing itself. The cover 49 is secured to the casing in any preferred way, as by the cap-screws 52 illustrated. A collar 53 bears against the front surface of the cover 49 and is secured by a suitable screw 54 to the bearing bushing 55, which is flattened as shown at 56 to provide an abutment for the set screw 54. The collar 53 thus prevents the shaft and sleeve from being pushed into the casing, while flange 59 keeps it from coming out when in operation. It is also to be understood that while it. isl preferred to drive the power feed from the lower end of the motor shaft, it could also be driven by the drilling spindle, as by means of a four-step cone on the drilling spindle or the upper end of the motor shaft connected by a `V-belt toanother fourstep pulleyattached to a shaft extending upwardly from the first worm gear assembly or rear unit 48, or an extension of shaft 43 without departing from the spirit of the invention.v Y

The shaft 48 has one member 51 of a flexible joint secured thereto,- as by the headless set screw 58 or other means, said member having a flange 59 carrying three studs or drive pins 60, preferably evenly angularly spaced. These studs 68 engage in holes in the yieldable disk 6| preferably made of rubber orsimilarmaterial, with fabric or the like embedded therein, to provide iiexibility combined with suiiicient stiifness and strength.

The companion flange 62 preferably is identical with the flange 59 in all essential respects,lbut is secured to the shaft 63 of the other unit by the shear pin 64, instead of a set screw. This shear pin is made of suitable material, such as brass for example, having less strength than would be available in a key or set screw, and is so designed that it will fail by shearing before an excessive force is transmitted to the front Aunit through the iiexible joint, so as to prevent injury or breakage of the other parts. The shear pin 64 has an externally threaded head fitting in the threads 65 of the hub 66 of the flange 62, and has a stem 61 of reduced diameter, fitting into the bore 68 of the shaft 63, the hub 66 having a hole 69 in line with the bore 65, so that when a pin shears ofi, the head 64 willfirst be removed from the iiange; and then the reduced end may be removed easily` through the alined holes 65 and 69, when the hole 68 is turned into line therewith.

The flexible disk 6| preferably has six holes therein, as shown at 10, in Figure 18, these holes being evenly spaced, so that three of them will receive the studs 60 of flange 59, while the remaining three will receive the corresponding pins 66 of the flange 62. Of course this is an arbitrary number, but it is the simplest satisfactory arrangement in most cases. The holes 19 preferably are large enough to receive the pins 66 freely, even when the flanges 59 and 62 are slightly out of parallel, so that no binding occurs when the shafts 48 and 63 are at a slight angle to each other, as happens when the power feed is out of service. The disk 6| of course should also be fitted loosely in the fianges, and in parti-cular -should have some axial clearance, to prevent binding when the shafts tilt.

The shaft 63 carries a worm 1| at its forward end, as shown best in Figures 6 and '1. The front unit or secondary gear reduction 4|, has acasing 12 for housing and protecting its elements. This casing carries an arcuate track or guide, preferably provided by the plate 13, secured to the housing 12 by screws 14, and having a groove 15 therein, formed as the arc of a circle having its center at the center of the flexible joint, as indicated at 16 in Figure '1. As this groove 15 provides a bearing for the shaft63, it will be seen that said shaft may tilt slightly about the said center point 16, while producing the minimum disturbance of the flexible connection because the relative tilt of the shafts occurs about a center located at the flexible coupling.

In the arcuate track 13 slides an arcuate rib or projection 11, rising from one surface of the bracket 18, which carries the spaced bearings V19 and 86 for the shaft 63. This bracket 18 has two elongated holes 8| and 82 extending there- .through, to receive the bolts '83 and 84, which 'preferably are stud-bolts, having one end of each threaded into one of the tapped holes in the plate 13, said studs projecting out through the slots 8| and 82, and receiving the washers 86 and the nuts 61. It will be noted that there are two nuts on'each stud, the top one serving as a lock nut. These nuts are to be screwed up just tightly enough to allow the bracket rib 11 to slide freely but without undue play in the arcuate groove of the plate 13.

The bracket 18 has a cavity therein, as indicated in dotted lines at 88 in Figures 6 and '1, in which is housed a spring 89, the lower end of which bears against the bottom-of the cavity, while the other end bears against the stud 83, so that the spring thus tends to force the bracket 18 downwardly, from the gear-meshing position indicated in Figure 6, to the gear-unmeshing p0- sition shown in Figure 7. The downward movement of this bracket is limited by the screw 99, which is threaded through the bottom of the casing 12, and may be secured against accidental shifting by the lock nut 9| on said screw. The upper end of this screw will abut against the lower corner of the bracket when the latter has been moved down far enough to cause the worm to be suiiiciently clear of the worm wheel, by means which will be described later.

A sleeve or collar 93 is secured to the shaft 63, as by a pin 94, and a ball thrust bearing 92 is preferably interposed between the collar and the adjacent end of the bearing 19, to absorb the end-thrust existing when the worm 1| is driving the worm wheel 95. As clearly seen in Figure 12,

collar 93 transmits the thrust from shaft 63 to bearing 92 whichY in turn transmits the thrust to bearing 19 formed on plate 18. As a consequence, the end thrust is transmitted from bracket 18 to casing 12 through arcuate rib 11 and groove 15 and little or no end thrust is transmitted to worm 1|. This worm is secured to the shaft 63 in any desired way, and a collar 96 is then placed on the end of the shaft 63, and secured by a pin 91 or equivalent means, to prevent the worm 1| from slipping endwise, when driving the worm wheel 95 The worm wheelA 95 is preferably keyed to the spindle 25, as shown at 98, so that the said spindle will be turned positively by the worm wheel when the power feed is in service. It will be seen that this spindle 25 is the same one that feeds the quill 24 when the manual feed is in use, and this is one of the important features of the invention, since a drilling machine may be sold initially with only the manual feed means, and at a later date, if it becomes desirable to provide power feed, it is necessary only to remove the original spindle 25, and substitute another one having the worm wheel 95 thereon, in addition of course to adding the remaining gearing, etc. The important point is that the drilling machine may readily be provided with the power feed means with the minimum of trouble and without discarding many of its original elements. The manual feed machine, when thus altered, becomes substantially identical with one initially having the power feed built thereinto.

It has been stated above that the worm 1| may be thrown into and out of engagement with the worm wheel 95 at will, and the mechanism for doing this will now be described. As already mentioned, the entire assembly, consisting of the .bracket 18 and all the elements carried thereby,

is so mounted as to be capable of a. slight degree of`pivotal motion about the center point 16 of a-eeefrsa 5 the flexible joint 59, 6| and B2. This motion is possible -because of the arcuate track i5 in thev plate 13, and the rib 11 on the bracket 1B, both centered at point 16. The spring 89 tends to force the bracket 18 downward toward gear-unmeshing position at all times, but restraining means are provided to prevent such movement, except when intentionally released, as will now be described.

The novel actuating mechanism for the front unit comprises a lever having a cam for forcing the bracket 18 upwardly against thek action of spring 89, to place the power feed in service, a separate pivoted latch snapping into place and locking the parts when bracket 18 attains operative position. The latch is also adapted to be actuated either manually by the lever, or automatically by a stop rod on the quill to release bracket 18 and allow spring 89 to quickly snap the gears out of mesh when the drilling operation is completed, sufficient lost motion being provided to permit the lever to effect both engaging and disengaging operations.

These restraining means include a cam 99 carried by an actuating lever |00, here shown as an L-shaped or right-angled lever, which is pivotally mounted at so that the ball-end |02 of this lever may move substantially up and down in the course of such pivotal motion. The cam 99 is secured to the lever |00by the screw |03, and is prevented from shifting by tting into a groove |04 of proper size in the under side of the lever. The cam 99 has an inclined upper surface |05 at its rear end, and a forwardly eX tending portion |06 having a hat abutment surface |06a adapted to abut the end of bolt |31, as shown in Figure 7, upon manual movement of bolt |31 to its retracted position and downward movement of lever |00 when it is desired to lock .the power feed in inoperative position. The inclined surface |05 coacts with the under surface |01 of a plate |08 secured to the bracket 18, preferably by screws |09, as shown best in Figures 9 and 12. In the latched condition of the parts shown in Figure 6, cam surface |05 is slightly spaced from plate |08 by reason of lost motion in the parts, which permits the lever to drop down a slight distance.

Referring now more particularly to Figures 8 .to 13, the details of the shifting means will be vwheel has a plane surface at its right-hand boundary, and the boss I0'is faced to bear against said surface, to assume any side thrust that may exist, while on the outside of the casingthere is a boss likewise having a plane outer face,

against which abuts the adjacent face of a collar ||2, which is secured to the spindle 25 in any way, as by the set screw H3, so that all play betweenvthe worm wheel and the casing may be prevented by positioning said collar properly. The worm wheel 95 is secured against turning on the spindle 25 by the key 98 already mentioned, and is further secured against slipping along the spindle by means of the set screw ||5.

'The lever |00 is pivotally mounted on the pin |0|, which has an enlarged head ||3 which rests-v ing 12. Also pivotally mounted on the pin |`0| is a latching element |20, which lies under the lever |00,'and has a ho-le |2| therein adapted to receive the end of the pin |22, when saidrpin |22 is in line therewith. The pin |22 has a knurled head |23, and is mounted to slide in the boss or lug |24 formed on the lever |99. This lug .has a cavityl |25 therein toreceive a spring |26 encircling the pin |22, and bearing against the flange or projection |21 of the pin |22, thus urging said pin |22 toward the element |20.

This element |20 comprises two alined lugs |28 and |29, both pivoted on the pin |01, as best shown in Figure 9, these lugs being connected by a bridge |30, Figures 16 and 17. Alug |3| hav` ing a downwardly opening bore |32, is also provided on the element |20, said bore housinga spring |33, the other end of which is retained in the cavity |34 in the inside of the bottom Iwall of the casing 12, as shown in Figure 8. This spring |33 thus urges the element |20 to pivot about the pin I0| in the opposite direction that the spring 89 tends to move the bracket 18, that is, it tends to lift the element |20 in opposition to the downward push of the said bracket, tc.- ward latching position.

The element |20 comprises further a horizontal boss or lug |35vhaving a bore |36, in which slides a bolt or latch |31, urged forward by the spring |38 housed in the bore |39 of said bolt,.and bearing at its rear end on the pin |40. The bolt |31 has a slot |4| therein, into which extends the lower end of a screw |42, threaded through the boss |35, and secured by the lock nut |43. y VThe bolt |31 is therefore capable of reciprocating in the bore |36 through a range determined by the length of the slot |4|. The upper surface of the front end -of this bolt is flattened, as .shown at |44. Referringr now to Figures 6 and 7, it will be seen that the nose at the right-handend of the cam 99 bears on this flattened surface |44, when the bolt is extended forward, but passes over the front end of the bolt when the latter is pushed back, these two conditions being shown in Figures 6 and 7 respectively.

The element |20 also has a plate |55 secured to its upper surface, by screws |46 or the like. as shown in Figures 16 and 17, this plate having a nose |41 thereon, shown engaged in a notch in the lower right-hand corner of another plate |48 in Figure 6, and disengaged therefrom in Figure 7. The plate |48 is secured to the bracket 19 by screws |49 or the like, as shown in Figure 9... A screw |50 is threaded through the bottom wall of the casing 12 as shown in Figures 5, 6 and 7, for example, and has a lock nut |5| thereon. This screw is intended for thepurpose of adjustably limiting the downward travel of the element |20, to permit sufficient movement to allow the worin 1| to become disengaged from the worm Iwheel 95, and a certain extent of extra travel, whereupon the screw may be locked against accidental shifting by means of the lock nut l5 Novel means are provided for lubricating the gears and the shaftbearings in all shifted positions of the shaft as follows.

A container |52, preferably made yof a transparent but non-glass material, such as the plastics of the methyl-methacrylate resin class, known by the trade name o f- Lucite or the like, is mounted on a metal base|53, having a tubu- 6 ast-'16,733

lar outlet |54 leading into the casing 12,A and terminating in a tube of smaller bore I 55, within said casing, shaped to reachnearly into the location at which the worm 1I and worm wheel 95 intermesh, as shown. A metal cap |56 is hinged to a ferrule |51 on the container, and a spring |58 at the hinge normally keeps the container closed. The tube 55 preferably extends up into the container to a point near the cap |56, and a wick |59 leads into said tube within the container, and extends to a point near or at the bottom of the container, to feed liquid into the tube |55. The structure just described is intended to serve as a lubricator, the container being transparent to show the level of oil therein, but non-brittle, to prevent breakage in its exposed position, the wick serving to feed the oil into the tube |55 by capillary action, the oil then passing to the side of Worm-wheel 95 and dripping on worm 1|, some oil eventually reaching the oilhole |60 (Figure 13) leading to the shaft 63 near the worm 1|, so as to lubricate the bearing there, the discharge point being so located as to insure lubrication of the gears and shaft irrespective of the shifted position of the worm shaft.

The rear assembly 40 is supported by the motor mounting plate I8, Figure 1. In the manual feed drill press, this plate is made apprcyimately square, so as to conform substantially with the shape of the motor bases encountered in the market, as the only ypurpose of the plate when power feed is'not used is to hold the motor. However, when such drilling machine i to be converted to power feed type, an extension is added to the plate to carry the rear unit 40. This is shown at |6| in Figure l, and it will be understood that a new or substitute plate will be provided, to replace the original square one, when the conversion is to occur. Inasmuch as the rear unit is carried by the motor supporting plate, it is clear that said unit will necessarily move to and frowith the motor itself, whenever the same is moved to adjust the tightness of the main drive belt of the drilling machine, by shifting the motor plate.

The front 'assembly 4| also needs means to secure it to the drilling machine, and this is readily provided by jointly making use of the manual feed shaft and the bore extending horizontally through the frame, and originally intended to receive the spindle of a foot-actuated feed device, this hole being indicated in dotted lines at |62, in Figure 2. Front casing 12 is rockable for adjustment purposes about the axis of the manual feed shaft, and is ultimately anchored in final position by the device to be now described. A special fitting |63, Figures 1, 2', 5, 6, 7, and 19, having a 'shank |64 with spaced portions of larger diameter, |65 and |56, which will fit into the bore |52, is attached to the drill press by inserting this portion into said hole, whereupon it may be held by tightening the screw |61 which is threaded into one end, a washer |68 under the head of the screw then bearing against one side of the frame of the drill press, while the shoulder |69 at the end of the portion |66 bears against the other side of said frame. A bracket extends from the shoulder, and has a flat face |1| thereon, and

pair of holes |19 therein, through which pass the screws |80, which are threaded into the tapped holes |82 formed in a portion of the upper surface of the casing 12, washers |8I being placed beneath the heads of said screws. When all these parts are assembled as just described, the casing 12 will thereby be secured to the frame of the drill press. The bracket |63 may be turned about its axis, as needed, and the bracket |15 may be shifted in a direction toward or from said axis, whereby the two brackets jointly afford all the adjustablity that may be needed to hold the casing 12 in its correct position, in any angular desired position the latter may assume with respect to the manual feed shaft. Also, minor adjustment of casing 12 is permitted by reason of the fact that the slots and holes in bracket |15 are larger than the diameter of screws |13 and'I80. A cover or guard 2 I9 may be applied to the lefthand face of the casing, to protect the mechanism therein (Figure 18).

Referring now to Figures 20, 21, 22 and 423, the novel guard housing and belt tensioning means for the power feed drive will be described. The casing 44 is secured to the motor plate I8 by means of the portion |83 extending from and forming a part of the said casing 44, preferably by means of two bolts or cap screws |84 and |85, with washers |86 under the heads thereof. A lug |81 extends rearwardly from the portion |83, and is bored vertically to receive the pin |88. This pin passes also through the spaced lugs |89 and |90 formed on the guard housing |9I, and is secured against loss by the Cotter pins |92, passing through holes |94 in the pin |88, Washers |93 being interposed.

The housing |9I is thus capable of swinging in a horizontal plane, about the pivot pin |88. A

spring catch |95'is secured to the guard at the other endQbyfmeans of the screw |96 threaded into the end of the guard, and the bent end of this spring is adapted to hook over a nose .|91 formed at the end of the casing 44, the spring being shaped as shown, so that it will engage or disengage according to the direction the guard ismoved, the lug |98 forming a convenient grip forso moving it. A slot |99 in the spring, and a washer 200, provide suitable adjustment for .the spring, so that it may act as desired to lock or unlock the guard, as will be obvious.

A pin 20| is mounted in two vertically alined holes 202 and 203 in the upper and lower walls of the guard, and secured by the set screw 204. This pin serves as a pivot for a bracket 205, having the two spaced arms 206 at one end, mounted in the guard on the said pin, and having the two spaced arms 201 at its other end, serving to hold another pin 208. The pin 208 is held in place in the bracket by an expansible plug 209 at one end, the pin being hollow to receive a rod 2I0, which is riveted over a washer 2|| at each end, to com- -press the plug 209, causing it to expand laterally and grip the corresponding arm 201 of the bracket. An idler pulley 2| 3 is mounted on the bearings 2|2, to rotate freely on the pin 208. A helical spring 2 I4 is placed over the pin 20|, one end 2|5 of the said spring bearing against a iin 2 |1 of the guard, and the other end 2 I6 bearing against the bracket 205, and urging it away from the guard, so that the pulley 2| 3 will bear against the l-belt 22, and maintain a certain tension therein.

However, when the guard is open, a lug 2|8 on the lower arm 206 of the bracket will engage the lower wall of the guard, and prevent further motion of the bracket '205 about its pivot, thus keepingcthe idler pulley in proper position to engage the belt again, when the guard is next closed. When the guard `is open, therefore, the tension of the belt 22 will loe relaxed, thus making it easy to shift or remove and replace said belt when desired. When the motor is moved toward or from the drill spindle, in order to adjust the main drive belt I3, it will be clear that this will not aiect the belt 22, since the two pulleys are both carried by the motor base. l

'A guard housing I4 is provided to enclose the cone pulley |2 at the upper end of the motor, the cone pulley at the upper end of the drill press, and the belt I3 connecting these two pulleys. 'Ihis guard is preferably made of three pieces, namely two substantially flat bottom members, lying horizontally at a level just below the pulleys, and an upper shell tting thereon, and movable vertically upward, so as to expose the belt and pulleys when desired, for shifting or replacing the belt, or for any other reason.. Means are provided to secure the upper shell 222 in its lowered position, and other means are also provided to hold this shell at an elevated position, to give access to the contents without necessitating the complete removal of the shell. The bottom is made in two pieces as stated, to facilitate applying it to the drilling machine, inasmuch as a onepiece bottom could not be put in place without removing many parts of the machine. This guard will now be described in detail.

Referring to Figures 3, and 24 to 30, it will be noted `that the lower front member 220 is substantially flat, and has an upwardly curved flange 223 at its front and sides, and a downwardly extending flange 224 at its lower central portion, this flange being curved to it the front of the frame of the drill press, to which it is secured in any way, for instance by the cap screws 225, Figi ure 3, one on each side of the said frame. The front section 223 meets the rear section at a joint 226, and these two sections are held in alinement with one another by the metal strips 221, which are fixed to one section, here the rear one, preferably by spot-welding, as indicated at 228. Since these strips are in pairs, above and below the sheet metal of which the section is made, they are thus automatically spaced apart correctly to embrace the companion section in the fork thereby formed, so that when engaged the two sections are held properly alined, although they may readily b-e separated whenever requisite.

The rear section 22| is likewise substantially nat, and has an upturned curved flange 229 like f the ange 223 of the front section, and adapted to constitute a continuation thereof when the two sections are in place on the machine. Ahole 23D is provided in this rear section, and preferably is approximately circular and concentric with the motor shaft, when the guard is in place. It will be seen that this hole 235 is here shown off the center line of the section 22|, because the motor shaft is not in line with the 'central plane of the machine, but to the left thereof. A slot or opening 23| is provided at the front end of the section 22|, and forms a continuation of the slot 232 in the front section when the sections are assembled on the machine.

The combined opening thus formed allows the bottom of the guard to fit down properly on Ythe frame of the drill press, with certain portions of the latter extending through said bottom. A lug 233 at the rear of the frame is bored horizontally to receive a rod 234, which may be held in place lirm'ly by the set screw 235; This rod has a hole 236 at each end, and in line with holes in the rear section 221 when the Alatter is in proper position, so that the said rear section 22| may be firmly secured to the frame by screws 231 and washers 233, the said screws passing through the section 22| and through the holes 236, and being secured by the nuts 239, as shown.

The upper portion of the guard, namely the single shell 222, is shaped as shown, that is, it is yapproximately semicircular at its ends, and

straight at its sides, matching the combined two lower sections in this respect, but slightly larger, and flared out a little at its vbottom edge, so that it will overlap them to a small extent, to alford a better closure and also to improve the appearance. A hook 240 is provided at the inside rear `of the shell 222, and `engages over the vflange 229, while similar hooks 24| attached to the inside of the shell `at both sides near the front engage over the flange 223, these three hooks thus keeping the shell in proper place on the Ylower sections, while the flare 242 surrounding the entire shell at its bottom edge forms a joint-concealing and ornamental nish.

In order to hold the shell 222 in place, despite vibration and accidental knocks, a rod 243 is fastened to the shell, for example by welding a plate 244 to the rod, and securing Ithis plate to the inside top of the shell by the screws 245 and nuts 243. A hole 241 is provided in the frame of the drill press to receive this rod 243 slidably and rotatably. A resilient catch 24B is secured to the frame by the cap screw 250 and washer 25|, as shown in Figure 29. The rod 243 has a circumferential groove 252 to coact with the curved end 249 of the catch 248, the said end being shown in the groove in the said Figure 29, The rod is long enough to hold the shell at an elevation sufficient to give access to the pulleys and belt when the catch is thus engaged, and the shell may also be turned about the rod as an axis when so raised, to give still more room to adjust or replace any of the parts normally enclosed in said shell. The shell may be lifted off entirely, if desired, as the rod will slip past the catch when sufficient force is applied, although lthe power of the spring 243 is ample to hold the shell itself.

When the shellis to be held securely in its closed position, use is made of a locking screw I 5, the manually operable head of which extends above the shell as shown. This screw is threaded into an axial bore 253 in the upper end of the rod 243, tapped to receive it, and a crossbore 254 extends into said bore at its bottom, and contains a ball 255, such as a steel bearing ball. A shallow flat-bottom groove 258 is provided in the rod 243 at the elevation of the cross-bore 254, and a split metal ring 251 is seated in said groove, somewhat as a piston ring would be seated in a piston. This ring 251 is small enough to pass-into the bore 241 when the rod 243 is pushed all the way down, until the shell is properly seated on the bottom sections, to enclose the pulleys and belt. The screw I5 has a conical'lower end 258, which will push the ball 255 out in the cross-bore 254 when the' screw is turned downward, thus forcing the ball against the ring 251, and thereby in turn forcing the said ring to expand and grip the wall of the hole 241, causing it to lock the rod firmly to the frame of the drill press. If and when any wear occurs, it is necessary merely to turn the screw I5 down a little further, so that it will always be possible to maintain a firm hold, preventing accidental lifting of the shell, while it is readily removable Whenever desired.

The operation `of the guard will be obvious from the disclosure of its structure. The front section of the bottom may be inserted from in front of the machine, and held by the screws 225, without in any way disturbing any adjustment of the machine, or removing any parts thereof, while the rear section can be put in place after the pulley |2 has been taken olf. If'the hole 230 is larger than the extreme diameter of the said pulley, even this need not be removed, although the removal and replacing of the pulley are simple operations, and require little time. Y

The operation of the machine is asfollows:

The workpiece to be drilled or otherwise acted on is placed on the table 2,'and it will of course be understood that it may be held in any conventional way, ina vise, jig, or the like. If manual control of the feed is desired, the pinion 'shaft 25 is actuated by the handle 26, inthe customary way, after the automatic feed has been disconnected by depressing the lever |00. This throws the worm 1| out of mesh with the worm wheel 95, by putting these parts into the positions shown in Figure 7. It will be seen that the parts are locked in these positions by the plate |45, the left-hand end of which bears against the righthand face of the plate |48, so that the element |20 cannot move upward in response to the spring |33. The bracket 18 meanwhile is held down by the spring 89, and will continue to be so held until the lever is forcibly raised, when the worm will snap back'into engagement with the worm wheel.

In this mode of operation the bolt |31 remains at all times fully extended out of the bore in the element |20, with the nose at the right-hand end of the cam 99 bearing against the upper flattened surface |44 of the said bolt, whereby the element |20 is depressed by the said cam when the lever |00 is forced down. When the bolt |31 protrudes thus, the pin |22 cannot enter into the hole inthe element |20, and therefore the lever |00 is not latched to the said element, and can be moved up and down at will, independent-ly of the element |20. To make it impossible to trip the lever 00 `upward accidentally at a time when actuation of the power feed would ruin the work piece or; injure the operator and put the automatic control completely out of service, it is necessary to push the bolt |31 into its cavity the element |20, as shown in Figure '1, and movethe surface |06a of portion |06 of the cam 98 over the forward end of the bolt, continuing the downward movement of the lever |00 until the pin |22 snaps into the cavity |2| in the element |20, thus latching the latter to the lever 00, until such time as the pin is again pulled out of the cavity. When the parts are thus interlocked, the bolt |31 is entirely out of theY way of the trip rod 31, so that the machine is set solely for-manual operation. To restore the automatic feed it is merely necessary to pull out pin |22 and lift lever 00, which allows the spring to project bolt |31 into its operative position, and at the same time bringing pin |22 out of alinement with cavity |2|.

When it is desired to use the automatic feed, the bolt |31 protrudes into the path of said trip pin 31, so that said pin may push the bolt down, near the end of the desired depth of drilling, until finally the element |20 has moved far enough to allow the plate |48 to slip past the plate |45, whereupon the Spring 89 will snap the bracket 18 downward into the position shown in Figure 7, (the contacting surfaces ciN members |48 and |45 being substantially concentric with the -pin |0| so that there will be no 'drop in pitch line engagement of the gears until parts |45and |48 completely lose engagement with each other) thus suddenly disengaging the worm 1| from the worm wheel 95, thereby stopping the downward feed of the drill. Obviously, this disengagement may be set to occur at any desired level of Vthe drill by proper adjustment of the height of the pin 31 by means of the nuts 34 and 35 on the rod 21, so that the feed will stop when the desired depth of drilling has been attained. When automatic feed is in use, the latch pin |22 will of course be kept out of the cavity |25, so that the lever |05 is not latched to the element |20. In order to reset the machine for the next drilling, the lever |00 is merely raised, to cause the worm 1| to mesh anew with the worm wheel 95, after which the new workpiece is putin place for drilling, whereupon the drilling to the desired depth commences again as soon as the motor is started.

Since there is a certain amount of overthrow, or excess motion available to the element |20 after the tripping takes place, before said element strikes the casing, advantage may be taken of this leeway to provide an exact depth of drilling, in such cases where extremely close tolerances must be maintainedthis being accomplished by finishing the feed by hand, after setting the nut 34 to the required degree of precision, so that the exact depth is reached when the under surface of said nut strikes the top of the notched part 33 of the frame 8, which takes placeshortly after the trip rod 31 has caused the automatic feed to stop. While the automatic feed will give depths uniform to within about ve to seven onethousandths of one inch, depending upon the hardness of the workpiece, it is possible to work within extreme limits of one one-thousandth of an inch, when counterboring as above described, finishing the feed manually.

The provision of two units in place of a'single one has several advantages. In the first placeit affords a simple way to attain a great reduction in speed, since each unit embodies a worm drive.

In the second place, it allows for variations between individual drill presses, since the two units may be spaced properly to compensate for somewhat different dimensions, by reason of the dexible connection between thel shafts of the two units, which also makes it possible to prevent any binding from lack of perfect alinement of the g units, and in the third place, the flexible joint be shifted bodily along the shaft 48 and secured by the set screw 58. Y.

The shear pin 64 will protect Vthe mechanism against injury in case of accidental incorrect setting or operation of the automatic feed, by shearing off when excessive force is applied thereto,

and may be replaced quickly and cheaply when so destroyed.

The rear guard for the belt of thefeed mechanism is a great convenience, because it automatically tightens the belt when closed, while it loosens it when open, thusfacilitatingthe changing of. this belt from. one: set of pulley" grooves toi another, in. changing the; rate of feed".

The'- method` of mounting; casing 12 on. the manual feed shaft, and? supporting thebracket: |63 on the drill press by inserting it through a bore: in the frame 8', permits turning the casing about the axis of the manual feed shaft and also rocking the bracket as may be necessary about its longitudinal axis, to line the units up properly, and further leeway is afforded by the slots |14 in the bracket |15, permitting a shifting at right angles to said axis, these two adjustments jointly permitting correct setting of the front unit in spite of wide variations in individual machines.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiment is therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein. Y

What is claimed and desired to be secured by United States Letters Patent is:

1. A power feed device comprising a reduction gear including a worm and a worm-wheel to be driven thereby, resilient means urging the worm to disengage from the worm-wheel, a latching means retaining them in mesh, a cam, a lever for operating said cam, said cam having parts respectively coacting with the latch and with means to move the Worm to meshed position whereby the lever in one position will cause the cam to release the latch, permitting the resilient means to suddenly disengage the worm from the wormwheel, while the lever when moved to another position will force the cam to shift the worm back into mesh with the worm-wheel, and also cause the latching means again to lock them in mesh, whereby a single lever thus controls all the operations required.

2. A power feed device asdefmed in claim 1, having additional means for positively locking the lever in such position that the worm cannot be caused to mesh with the worm-wheel.

3. A power feed for a machine tool having a tool spindle, said feed comprising two reduction gear units, saidspindle having a shaft associated therewith for feeding it axially, said shaft being carried by the machine tool, means mounting one of said units in xed position relative to said shaft on said machine tool, the other of said gear units being provided with a housing, said housing being mounted upon said shaft, and capable of pivotal adjustment about said shaft as an axis, whereby it may be turned as a whole into proper angular position to aline with said one unit, to permit the two units to be connected operatively to one another, and means for rigidly securing said housing in adjusted relation to said shaft.

4. A power feed as dened in claim 3, wherein the housing has an additional slight range of adjustment parallel to said shaft, to permit better alinement of the two units.

5.'A power feed for a machine tool having a tool spindle, and a shaft carried by the machine tool and associated with the said spindle to feed it axially, a housing mounted on said shaft, and capable of pivotal adjustment about'the axis of the said shaft, to vary the angular position of the housing as a whole, means for securing the housing to the machine tool at a selected position ofY angular adjustmentr a. reductionv gearl unit said: housing, and. comprisinga worm. andawormwheel, a shaft carryingsaid wormv and extending out of the. housing, a second, reduction. gear. uniti carried by the machine tool in fixed relation to said first named shaft and having a shafty extending. therefrom and toward the shaft of the first-named unit, said two shafts being alined by virtue of the above-named angular adjustment the housing also being capable of a slight adjustment parallel to the first-named shaft, and means for securing the housing in position, to prevent shift along the first-named shaft and to maintain the worm in properly centered relation to its worm-wheel, comprising a bearing for the said shaft abutting against one face of the wormwheel within the housing, and a collar on the shaft outside the housing and bearing against an outer wall of the housing, thus positively preventing any axial shift of the worm-wheel relatively to said housing.

6.- Operating means for the feed mechanism of machine tool spindles, comprising a driven member, a driving member, bearing means for said driving member, means associated With said bearing means urging the driving member to an inoperative position relative to said driven member, means operative in opposition to the latter means to operatively engage the driving member with the driven member, including a manually operable lever and a cam carried thereby, a relatively movable mem-ber to lock the driving menber in its operative position, said cam having a part coacting with said locking member in the movement of said lever in one direction to release the driving member for movement to inoperative position by said urging means.

7. The combination defined in claim 6, together with a movable abutment carried by said lockingv member, and means yieldingly holding said a-butment in position for engagement by a part moving with the machine spindle to automatically actuate said locking member to release position, and said cam part upon further movement of the lever in said direction coacting with said abutment to retain the same out of the path of movement of said part.

8. The combination dened in claim 6, together with a movable abutment carried by said locking member, and means yieldingly holding said abutment in position for engagement Iby a part moving with the machine spindle to automatically actuate said locking member to release position, said cam part upon further movement of the lever in said direction coacting with said abutment to retain the same out of the path of movement of said part, and means for releasably latching the lever against movement from the latter position thereof.

I9. A feed means for use in feeding a drill spindle to a work piece, comprising a two part shaft, one part of which is swingable; a worm mounted on said swingable shaft; means for connecting said swingable part to said other part,

said means including a flexible joint whereby the swingable portion may be tilted to an angle with relation to said other part; and swingable bearing means journalling said one shaft part intermediate of its ends and between said flexible joint and worn for tilting movement.

10. A drilling machine having a tool spindle, a power feed device for said spindle including coactng disconnectible driving and driven elements, means for disconnecting said elements comprising pre-settable means movable with the m'ally be obtained 'by the power feed, and said pre-settable means including an adjustable 'stop member to cleiinitely` limit such further manual feed of the machine spindle.

crmIsTY A. WEKEN. H. v. BOEHNKE. 

